“There are two in a secluded nook…
Just two—in the human sea…
Like a perfect match they look.
Only two on the ring—he and she.”
Pantelaymon Lukov
Lately there is a growing trend to have women in boxing matches in Panama. They are a good attraction and their performances are bringing in the crowds.
A female boxer that is very popular nowadays is Ana Pascal. Ms. Pascal is a Light welterweight known as “The Dynamite”. Her record is: Won 11, Loss 1, Draws 0, Total fights 13.
When I visited the Gimnasio Pedro “Rockero” Alcázar, I was lucky to find Ms. Pascal training at an abandoned baseball park. It was early morning; approximately 7:00 a.m. She was trotting around the park and looked very strong, healthy, and intimidating. She was training for her next fight on July 9, 2011.
Ana Pascal is a muscular warrior who shaves her head and looks absolutely fierce and her features are very much like a “macho” man. She is a great athlete, totally ferocious and a sight to behold. I was most fortunate to find her training that early morning.
I trotted for a while with Ms. Pascal and exchanged a few words. I couldn’t keep up with her pace. I’m afraid my physical condition pales to those of Ana Pascal. Her trainer, José Paz, was also at the venue checking her time with a chronometer. He told me a fascinating story which I thought was quite unusual. He said that Ana Pascal fought with a man in Curacao. He was a Venezuelan veteran boxer called José Español.
When I came back home, I researched this event using Google and this is what I found:
“On October 2003 in Curacao, Ana “Dinamita” Pascal (138 lbs), Panama, a top-ranked women’s boxer fought the 37-year-old male boxer, Jose Español, from Venezuela. Pascal, according to news sources, took quite a beating, when the fight was stopped by the referee in the fourth round.
The “Fight News” reports says: “The very masculine-looking Ana “Dinamita” Pascal of Panama, coming in with a record of 6-0, against a man. The bona fide male proceeded to beat Ms. Pascal to a bloody pulp, forcing the referee to stop the contest in the fourth round. “However, Ana Pascal disagreed with the reports that she had been knocked out. “The guy tried to knock me out,” Pascal reports, but he couldn’t even knock me down. We went the eight rounds and at the end, even he asked for applause for me.”
So, there have been conflicting reports as to how the male-female encounter ended. However, in any case, the result could only be called a no-contest and termed an “exhibition” in view that no boxing body or commission has accepted the principle of mixed gender bouts. By the way, Pascal’s scheduled female opponent Luz Marina Sanavia failed to appear and that she was offered the fight with the man.”
Below are several snaps I shot while I visited an abandoned baseball park (Estadio Juan Demóstenes Arosemena) where Ana Pascal was exercising with her trainer one early morning in Panama City, Panama. Here we go.
Source: Only two on the ring – He and She – Female Single Combat Club
Lingua Franca 
I think you are on the right path to being famous for your photography, Omar. If you are able to meet these people, face to face, and then ask for their picture, that is remarkable.
Hello Abe:
Thank you so much for your complimentary remarks. Coming from a professional photographer, your words mean a lot to me. As you know, you and Don Ray have been my relevant reference points. Your pictures of Sendai and your backyard are known all over the world and ones that I admire.
Once again, thank you, Abe.
Enjoy the rest of the day.
Omar.-